Exploring the Power of Magic + How to Make More Of It

In this episode, I speak to the creator and founder of Mindfulness + Magic, Erin Sharaf, about the world of magic. We explore what magic is (hint: it’s way beyond pulling rabbits out of hats), how we can more magic in our lives, and why it so important for us as individuals and for the planet.

Erin Sharaf is a recovering academic who helps people reclaim their health, power and vitality through enhancing the connection between mind, body, spirit and nature. Erin practiced as a primary care provider for 10 years and is now a shamanic practitioner who believes that the unseen worlds are just as real and powerful as the visible and quantifiable world.

You’re listening to the uncorked conversation with Allyson Scammell episode number four. Hello and welcome to the uncorked conversation, a podcast for soul guided passion filled women entrepreneurs who want to uncork big magic in life and business without burning out.

We’ll get to the truth of how to uncork our gifts, the ones we keep hidden inside., and how to infuse those gifts into our personal and professional life in a way that feels like magic.

We’ll also uncover how to truly experience the joy of the journey through smart time management and planning. I’m your host Allyson Scammell. Let’s uncork.

Hello Friends. You are in the right place because we have an amazing episode coming up. I am completely thrilled to be speaking with the enchanting Erin Sheriff about the world of magic. What is magic how we can make it and why we should.

Erin Sheriff is the creator and founder of mindfulness and magic where she helps people reclaim their health power and vitality through enhancing the connection between mind body spirit and nature.

Erin practised as a primary care provider for 10 years and now calls herself a recovering academic and shamanic practitioner who believes that the unseen worlds are just as real and powerful as the visible and quantifiable world. I agree with that. Welcome Erin. I’m so happy you’re here. How are you.

Well thank you Allyson. I’m doing really well and it’s such a great pleasure to be with you as well.

I’m very very happy you took the time. I’ve known you for some time and I’ve known for some time you are the founder of mindfulness and magic and eyesight’s. Let us just connect here on this word and maybe we have different definitions.

I think that would be really cool if we did and see where this could take us in terms of what it is and how it could be a game changer in our lives. So let me start with how you define the word match.

Well the definition is not simple and keep safe. It’s definitely been evolving over time and I think words are inherently limited.

So I don’t know that this will do it justice but I think magica a few components to it.

One is synchronicity and being open to the fact that Synchronicity is not changed and that there are unseen forces out there that we can have a relationship with and that it’s a relationship that is a two way street and they could the way you can give you can receive it can talk you can listen.

And when you don’t have intention with a pure heart and want to be observing things that we might hope earnestly start to happen a lot more often. The magic to me isn’t biting the divine to dance with us and being open to clearly hear her when she says yeah I accept this down let’s do it and then letting her leave sometimes still even though she might not lead you to a place that you thought you wanted to know go trusting over time as you build up that relationship that okay she know time zones is going to be fun and interesting even though it’s not.

At all what I expected or thought my rational brain was. So it’s an embracing of the mystery and knowing that not everything can be quantified and controlled. Nor should it be. And that old adage that you to see it in order to believe it we may need to flip that on its head and say well we have to believe it in order to see it.

So being open to the fact that that might actually be the case the magic to me is reconnecting with ceremony and ritual that our ancestors knew were important to honor the natural world the unseen world and then stealing her honor you back.

With this concept in shamanism called reciprocity whereby everything is alive. Trees. I think people could probably agree that animals are alive means and have souls but a shaman is of trees and soda rocks and so does air and water. So knowing that all of that is alive and when we honor all of that but first the answer onerous back and that is real magic.

It’s saying yes to the mysteries of life and as Dr. Rachel Naomi Rumman says we’ve traded in our culture of mystery for mastery and that has diminished. So we set a clear intention from the heart. Imagine we offer to be observers and then you kind of step back and watch life unfolding and be open to what wants to happen.

And often times what wants to happen unfolding with much more grace and ease than we could have ever made possible through our rational mind which I believe is smaller than the magic. So imagine we wake up every day excited about life no matter what is going on in the world because we feel through the illusion.

To what extent do we trust in the divine order of things and know that we’re in the flow and we’re doing our part in this chaotic time and that the chaos is here for a purpose. So there’s peace and the magic there’s purpose in the magic.

And I have never had thought about it my entire life since I started walking down the pathway so beautiful. I love it. And I love how you started.

That’s why I wanted to do this podcast because words don’t do justice. When you start digging underneath the surface of a word a simple word magic which you know you could think of magic tricks that you saw as a child.

And then there is so much more infinite ways that you can feel with this word and take this word and make this word mean. And I’m going to yes. And you Aaron I did a whole podcast on. Yes. And to everything you said meaning I’m agreeing with it and I’m going to add my definition which is very much in line with everything you just said and building on your.

What wants to happen and being at purpose and peace in the magic. I see it also as a feeling and an outcome. That results when we connect our core gifts to our ideal people in that creative process of you in as you called it your purpose and in your piece. And you’re really offering up that best part of you that best most powerful most creative why you’re here just up to the people that you’re here to serve.

And when I’m in that space of doing that connecting my guess to my people the only word that describes the feeling of it and the outcome of it is magic for me. Just as Swaptree rolls off the tip of my tongue just this feeling of magic you know the word magic sound to me. As words do that that serve as like a guide or a conduit to something that is more so I’m just wondering how the word magic found you.

Well that’s a good question because it absolutely did find me and it found me a little bit before I was ready for it and that’s okay now looking back it was perfect timing.

I was actually a full time academic when it found me and I was up to my eyeballs and edited pain in the rational world. And there was never one thought about magic in the course of any of my days in academia. And a part of my diet I didn’t want to admit it because I had worked really hard to get. Where I was in a rational academic world.

I spent a lot of time and a lot of money climbing the ladder to get here and from the outside it looked like they had me. And here I was a wonderful spring job doing great work. But a part of my soul knew that it wasn’t enough and it wasn’t that I was dying of a bit each day but I wasn’t ready to face that. Here I am at this conference in Las Vegas of all places. I met this woman who was a computer programmer something she owned her own business and the tech world and her company was called to the magic in logic or logic is magic.

But she had magic in the title of her business. And I remember it was the moment in time of being blown away like the word magic in her business. It was like the biggest scandal I had ever seen she said out loud. What I they were my clothes for. She suddenly saying that she had put up her business card and I didn’t even know what it meant at the time necessarily but something to fill it up with some new possibilities and thought oh wow how cool would it be to have that. I’m not really thinking I could have.

And then a few years later when I finally had the courage to make a change and walk away give myself space to recreate. I still didn’t even know at that time what the magic was. Attention. My goal was for a lot of years at that point and that could be evidence base that mostly rational. But I think has a big toe dipped in the magical world. But I thought the commenters of my foremost not that I didn’t know what it meant but it just felt right. They might all be.

That is so cool. And what a hero’s journey. It sounds like you were.

You received the call as you said before you were ready and you resisted it. I sure did. Yeah man I love that you sort of incorporated it even before you knew what it meant just because you knew you had it had to be there.

It had to be there and there was a feeling as you said a rational mind couldn’t explain it. My academic friends were like What are you going to be pulling rabbits out of. How are you. There are tricks.

Well what else could I could explain it to them in words but I’ve lived into it over the years and now I can totally explain it.

So beautiful I lived into it over the years. I really love that.

And I think that that is the beauty that words tensors because it is just a word it tells so much as you see the calls you get a nudge for word finds you.

And it really just won’t go away and you follow the urges.

And as Erin said you incorporate it before you’re ready. It really can be something that serves as a huge part of your life. Yeah.

Yeah. Honoring of what you know to be true.

Exactly. So now the question is why should we care about creating magic like OK so it was meaningful in my life and it was meaningful in your life. But maybe were just you know loopy magic makers. Why should people care about making treating magic like flies. Well I believe it to be a fundamental part of our journey. So maybe you share that assessment and if you do.

Well if someone is completely thrilled and happy with their life right now maybe they should care about it. Maybe they have all the magic thing. But if somebody was coming to your car.

Thinking that there are areas of their life that are really totally optimized then I would say you really might want to start hearing about magic because over time they embrace again this feeling into what it means for each person and probably a little bit individual for each person. But life can be so much easier than we have made it in our culture.

It doesn’t have to be such a struggle. We’re not meant to be exhausted and grinding it out and just pulling life off to live on weekends or on vacation. That’s not what we came to this incredible plan to do. I think a lot of people and I was there for a long time you are walking around much fully alive. And when you were willing to turn towards that magic and explore it and investigate it you can start really really slowly.

PETER CAVE How easy it can be and how waves of life can be. And then you want more. And so it’s sort of like you were born with this superpower and you’re saying you know I’m not going to fluff up that cape and fly the cape and collecting dust in your closet and all you have to do is take it out and shake the dust off it put it on and flapping your wings a little bit.

And at first it might feel silly but over time you start to get a little air again all the more air and the next thing you know you’re soaring up above your old life going. Why did I do it that hard way for so long.

Why is living in your full potential as a human divine being and doing that dance.

And it is a a lost potential to not or the magic in my opinion and also the magic is going to save this world right now that is in such chaos that a lot of boys are in this transition time and as the old adage goes we can’t solve problem using the same thinking that created them. So we need the magic right now on the planet for people to step into their magic.

It’s not selfish it’s a service to what’s going on right now. And it’s the magic the feeling into that trusting the honoree stepping away from the tyranny of the quantifiable which author Rebecca Solnit called to create in our culture. So all of that the more of us start to end when these pockets of people that are very Sweetser to coalesce.

One day we’re gonna reach a tipping point and that’s when things I believe are really going to start to shift on the planet. So for all those reasons for individual personal happiness and empowerment and also to save our beloved planet we all should be stepping into our magic and not everyone is ready but I’m guessing that everyone is listening to airport podcast ours is ready.

Yes. And so for so so beautiful. I just my feeling alive in my heart right now just on every word you say. I love how I can agree more that when it feels when it starts to feel easy you know you’re on the right track. And if it is hard that’s okay it’s feedback that maybe some different shifts need to happen. And I totally agree that when I’m feel like I’m in magic making magic producing magic it’s really easy and it’s really just juicy it’s flow.

Yeah it’s one of the first things you said is that synchronicity. Absolutely. And I also love how you describe where we are on the planet again. Absolutely agree. And it is. We have been taught that when we really focus in or it’s kind of been culturally ingrained for many of us that focusing is selfish you know you want to save the planet and go outside of yourself go you know. I wanted to save the planet really bad since I was a child.

So to me that was like OK do humanitarian aid work which is an honorable profession. So like I wanted to go go save the planet somewhere outside of myself and then I what I really learned through that. Process was that saving the planet started in side I didn’t have to go anywhere.

CONAN Was finding that magic inside of me just as you described it. And when you really take that time and very unselfishly look within and remove the barriers that are hiding your magic and covering it and. End the resistance that you have to it. And when you spend that time removing those barriers and resistance and tapping into it. And honoring it. That. Is when you really really are in service to the planet.

Yes.

Yes. And what you see Croker’s and so if you’re feeling stress and fear and hate and division we’re going to get more of that air force feeding magic and synchronicity and the love and connection and a weakness. We’re going to get more of that doesn’t mean we go into a hole and just do our magic by ourselves to share it with people by who you are. If nothing else.

Yes. I love that you said that I often get pushback from people who are late. Yeah I was saying you’re just in your own little world. You know creating magic and you are not. You know it’s it’s that idea that we have to go outside of ourselves to help. And it’s not bad at all.

It’s really creating this magic does really reverberate energetically throughout the world to the cosmos and it’s just so lovely sister blasts reverberate reverberate on us. Exactly. So how do you Aaron. Credulousness more magic in their lives. For those who are interested for those who are intrigued. For those who are stealing that they want more magic. How how do you advise that they can spend some time creating magic.

Well there’s probably an infinite number of ways to create magic. So these are not the only ways but these are some of the ways that work for me and that may be easily accessible for people to get some magical friends. So you say that you’re the average of the five people who spend the most time with them.

And you know we get a lot of our friends are dear lovely people but they see maybe at the level that you are right now and if you want to step into magic you can find some magical brands and if you’re thinking well how do I find magical friends. Maybe you find them in the virtual world first that’s how it works for me. Join the Martha Burk Web coach training to build it magic or people.

Maybe that’s how that’s how we do.

So we just met them online. Some of them I’ve since met in person but it just the strength in numbers initially when you’re just not sure what this is. You don’t have any role models the people who are coming out to find some role models of people who are living this magical life give them their Facebook group get on their e-mail list maybe take a class from them maybe other people in your community doing things that sound like they’re a little bit out there.

You’ve always been intrigued by it. Stretch your boundaries order but you have to stretch and get outside your comfort zone it’s gonna feel a little strange in the beginning probably and you’re going to your rational mind is going to start questioning you. But you gotta just put that aside don’t let that fear and rationality drive the bus anymore and explore feel into these new things and you get a happier you’ll feel it in your body and you just keep going down that road.

So yes some people in your life who can embodied and spend time in nature. There is so much magic in nature to get out there and just book and feel and listen and smell ketchup feed army urges your hands get out of nature as much as you can and communicate with her and honor her. So every morning I start by by thanking the elements.

So I day air breathing me I think water for cleansing me I thank my father son for warming a mother for supporting me. So I start every day by not taking all of that for granted. And then I try to give gifts to them as often as I can throughout the day like I will take a straw that it may seem like a little pain but it’s the intention behind the little thing.

So when I see Millstream our oceans are drowning in Arctic. So I don’t need 10 minutes of convenience or promise not even convenience to then have that thing be in the planet for ya. So when I do that I do that with an intention my heart of hers gift to my planner and my air and my water. And I believe in my worldview that you’ve just felt the flag.

When a friend comes up to you. Hey here I’m thinking about you I got you this thing and it’s a really sweet moment and you feel more connected to that person. That’s what I do for the planet and for them when I need a little something. She’s there for me and I can tell you so many stories about the way the planet support me.

Other people giving me cars and free health housing and like so many things that would resonate with people from a practical standpoint. To me the most important gift to the spiritual world. But when you feel into that dance with the divine. And it’s not just take your giving give on a regular basis you know take reusable bags but do it from a place in your heart. The intention is important so again hegemonism giving to my clan right now and it’s a privilege sharing go.

So connect into that intention of being of service of love to the planet to the earth and strengthen your relationship with her and with all of the elements and with the magic. Another good shepherd is to get Jill Jane a lot of magic in the stoma.

And we have gotten away from stomata in our culture. So give yourself the gift of some sort of contemplative practice to feel into all of that. Maybe journal about it afterwards but you’ve got to find stillness the dark quiet place. There were a lot of the treasure buried so a new thing that could keep going but does that give you a sense of the starting point.

It does in every tip that you mention could be a whole podcast in area at this hour. So thank you for summing up the really big question and a small bite sized way that people can digest. I love the idea of finding magical friends and getting the tribe.

Couldn’t agree more. I’m glad you mentioned about if you’re going to create more magic it will feel like a stretch at first and I had said earlier in the podcast that if it feels easy that you know you’re on the right path. And I’m going to yes and myself and say yes it will also feel like a stretch and that will also feel hard it will feel like a challenge.

You will likely be out of your comfort zone pushing the edges of your comfort zone and presenting yourself in a whole new way and adopting language you’re not used to saying and saying goodbye to all the social circles that don’t serve you anymore. And hello to you social circles.

Now that is a real challenge at first and you will feel resistance which is normal but if you keep into it if you keep just pushing in on the edges of the comfort zone then the ease comes when then when the magic really starts to flow in that’s really one the EAS starts to flow in your life and that synchronicity and then you really know that you’re you’re on the right track. Love what you said about nature.

Absolutely. Couldn’t agree more. And I absolutely love what you said about the small. The intention you sat behind a small act. You know using the Strozzi great example in that small intention really is much bigger than you may think. So if you ever get into the mindset well it doesn’t matter it’s just one straw.

Everyone else is doing it. I really encourage you to tweak that mindset too. You know what I can’t control what other people do but I can control what I do.

Ray Start Where You Are?

Start small and I think you said something important about them is that you have to be willing to let some things go to make space for the magic and that can be difficult and tricky but you have to make space for it. So some relationships might go hand job a go. Some old habits might go your TV might go you know changes but things will start to fall away as you walk down this path. Make space for the new life that wants to be born and that’s okay.

And it may feel a little lonely that path. I know Martha Beck calls it a feeling of being alone in the elevator. You’re just waiting for people to get on. And I felt for a long time that I was alone in the elevator. I’m like Well everybody can join me in this elevator. And I spent maybe a longer time alone than others. I don’t know. But for me it felt like a long time and then I realized that it all served a purpose.

This feeling of retreating into myself and really doing some inner work and letting go of all the relationships before new ones were even created.

Yeah hence the loneliness feel feelings of loneliness but again embrace that.

It’s not a sad time it’s it’s me a very beautiful time of inner work and just connecting with nature as Aaron said and texting and with yourself. And then when the time is ripe the new people will find you the new tribe the new circles and and they will be very aligned and they will be more powerful and more enriching connections than you can imagine.

Yes yes yes. Alison thousand times yes.

Oh my gosh. I could continue on this thread for a lot more time. It’s been absolutely amazing connecting with you on this topic.

So beautiful everything you had to say. Can you tell our listeners how people can find you if they want to learn more.

And I have lots of different free items I could check out. Have a six day guided meditation to honor the elements of my morning ritual. They made two videos about to guide people through. So yeah if you’re in others you want wanna hang out.

Come on over and I would love to support anyone on the mindful car. The tribe is growing so thank you so much for this opportunity our earnings for all the great work that you’re doing in the world.

Thank you. Thank you so much. And I’ve been on Aaron’s mailing list for some time. As a beautiful writer she read some great stuff so get on her mailing list check out her free offerings. She is a great teacher and our challenge.

Erin ammos challenge for the listeners is to see how you can create your feeling called to do so a little bit more magic in your likes and how that to look like for you. And if you just set the intention then the answers will start to appear of the shifts that you can start making in your life to day to create more magic and find this magical path that’s ahead of you.

And last but not least if you’re feeling connected to this content subscribe and leave a reading and review on iTunes so more people can find us. And until next time stay uncorked.

If you’re looking for a new tribe to be creating some magic with them. Join the uncorked cabal we’re a band of rebel dreamers and schemers dreaming up new ways to uncork big magic in life and business without burning out.